1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fairing assembly for covering a front portion of a motorcycle.
2. Description of Related Art
The front fairing employed in most of the motorcycles currently in use is generally made of a synthetic resin and molded to varying shapes. For example, two-component type made up of left and right fairing segments and three-component type made of up left, center and right fairing segments are made available in recent years. Particularly where the fairing is desired to fit around a top portion of the front fork assembly, and be yet extended down to under the motorcycle engine, the three component type is largely employed, which is made up the a center fairing segment, designed as an upper fairing segment so as to enclose the instrument panel and the headlight unit, and left and right fairing segments designed to enclose generally opposite regions leftwardly and rightwardly of the front fork assembly and of the motorcycle engine.
The JP Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2005-153664 discloses a motorcycle fairing having ventilating windows, defined in respective side portions thereof generally rearwardly of the motorcycle radiator with respect to the direction of forward travel of the motorcycle, and left and right flappers for selectively opening or closing the ventilating windows in dependence with the wind pressure present inwardly of the fairing. According to the above mentioned patent publication, when the motorcycle is driven at high speed under severe heat condition, the flappers are moved to the open position to allow heats, evolving from the radiator, to be discharged from under a lower portion of the motorcycle and through the ventilating windows to thereby facilitate heat release from the radiator.
The motorcycle fairing is apt to get stained with mud, dirt and/or fugitive dust sloshed by the motorcycle front wheel during the travel of the motorcycle and/or to get tainted with small stones or any other particulate matters that are flipped by the revolving front wheel. Particularly when the fairing gets locally damaged with the paint coating locally stripped in contact with small stones, the appealing appearance of the motorcycle fairing comes to be spoiled. As a result, the damaged fairing is replaced with a new one requiring a substantial amount of cost.
In addition, the conventional motorcycle fairing of the three component type has left and right side fairing segments each having a smooth, streamlined outer surface (a surface facing outwardly of the fairing with respect to the motorcycle body) ranging from a front edge to a rear edge thereof. The wind incoming to the motorcycle, while the latter is travelling, impinges upon such outer surface of the respective side fairing segment and then flows along such outer surface in a direction rearwardly of the motorcycle and, therefore, a relatively large frictional resistance is developed between the incoming wind and the outer surface of the respective fairing segment.
On the other hand, since the motorcycle fairing disclosed in the above mentioned patent publication has built therein the ventilating system comprised of a combination of the ventilating windows and the flappers for selectively opening or closing the respective fairing windows so that heat evolved inwardly of the fairing can be released away from the motorcycle, the fairing as a whole requires a complicated structure and is indeed costly.